Church Voices

15 Responses to “Church Voices Podcast #1: Balancing Act”

1. Christian Says:
   July 12th, 2006 at 3:23 pm

   These guys are lame and offensive. They certainly aren’t building others up. They’ll let anybody on this internet thing these days. Why in my day…

2. Tim Reed Says:
   July 12th, 2006 at 11:26 pm

   I would recommend that no one listen to these two, they are outrageous and will surely offend the people you don’t like very much. So don’t download this and listen to it because surely you will not want us to hear us enrage and infuriate those individuals you hate to hear speak.

3. Cal Says:
   July 13th, 2006 at 5:25 pm

   I encourage you to think before you speak. This discussion could very easily turn toward bashing people. The real reason people are “unbalanced” as you call it is because they don’t know the Bible. For growth it must be studied, taught, and hidden in your heart. People don’t read the Word and thus don’t know what God wants. They don’t know the truth because they don’t read it. As pastors, it is our job to bring the truth to them. I tell my students that they should not take anything I say at face value but go home and look it up in the Word. I tell them to behave like the Bereans did in Acts 17 and examine the scriptures to see if what they are taught lines up.
   Lastly, I would encourage you to be humble. Nothing turns people away like proud, arrogant people who believe they have all the right answers to the point that they are pompus about it. It is a thin line and I urge you to steer away from it.
   This message will have one of two effects. Either you will take it to heart and perhaps avoid offending someone just for the sake of offending or you will laugh me off and disregard it altogether. I’m just a guy trying to follow Jesus and I screw this stuff up all the time also. Peace to you.
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4. Christian Says:
   July 13th, 2006 at 5:36 pm

   Sarcasm is a lost art.

5. Tim Reed Says:
   July 13th, 2006 at 6:01 pm

   Honestly, I’m having a really hard time trying to figure out where you’re coming from. I’ve re-listened to the podcast again, and as far as I can tell the only people we bashed were obviously evil individuals (Hitler, Kim Jong Il) or obviously wrong individuals who have made buffoons of Christianity and Christians over and over again (Pat Robertson).

   That being said we did make generalizations about a large group (the WWII generation). Which, I believe is an accurate generalization, and anyone claiming otherwise needs to come up with an alternate explanation for why the church has been in decline since the late 50s. If its not a generational issue then what issue is it? How did the church decline so much over one generation if its not attributal to the actions of the church in the previous generation.

   Honestly, I find your post to be extremely arrogant. Re-read your last paragraph that deals with our reaction to your post. You posit two scenarios, one in which we respond in the way you want us to, and one in which we respond in a way in which you don’t want us to. However you’ve left off any scenario in which there is the most remote possiblity that you’re wrong. Your assumption is that you’re right and what we’re doing is detrimental to the kingdom. Unfortunately we do talk about some unpleasant truths, and issues that need to be addressed in a different way.

   Can we at least entertain the possiblity that the issues we’re bringing up are both fruitful for discussion and aren’t detrimental to Chrsitendem?

6. Cal Says:
   July 14th, 2006 at 10:17 am

   I think you’re misunderstanding my post. I said it could very easily turn toward bashing. I did not say you were bashing.
   My point is that unbalance in people’s lives comes from them not knowing scripture. They focus more on some area than another and get unbalanced because they don’t have an understanding of the Bible and what we are supposed to be about.
   I think these are valid points for discussion and I am not commenting on the fact that it’s discussed. My comments were aimed more at Christian’s comment about Baptists and not so much about Pat Robertson. (He knows this.) Although, you guys do refer to him (PR) as an idiot which I would not qualify as edifying. It makes you seem arrogant and rude. I am a pastor at a Baptist Church and like all denominations we have people in our congregations who don’t know what they believe or why they believe it based on scripture. The reason for the unbalance is Biblical illiteracy. They don’t check the things they are taught against the Bible.
   I absolutely think we need to talk about these things and that they can be fruitful. I also agree that the WWII generation screwed things up. I don’t dispute that at all. My post had nothing to do with that.
   Of course you find my post arrogant. It was not meant that way. I said I’m just a guy who messes this stuff up all the time too. I don’t have all the answers and I am not always right. I get the feeling that the two of you always think you are right.
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7. Tim Reed Says:
   July 14th, 2006 at 10:33 am

   Cal,

   What do you think you’re wrong on in your post?

   Tim

8. Cal Says:
   July 14th, 2006 at 10:34 am

   In that particular post, obviously I don’t think I’m wrong or I would not have posted it.
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9. Cal Says:
   July 14th, 2006 at 10:36 am

   What I was saying is that I am sometimes wrong about things, as we ALL are. When we are wrong we need to admit it so we can be more (and here you go) balanced.
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10. Cal Says:
    July 14th, 2006 at 10:38 am

    What are you wrong about?
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11. Tim Reed Says:
    July 14th, 2006 at 10:57 am

    Why, Cal, that seems rather arrogant of you.

    It seems to me that if you are allowed to put forth your opinion with certainty of correctness you should be extending that same privlidge to others (even those you disagree with) without calling them arrogant.

12. Cal Says:
    July 14th, 2006 at 11:52 am

    Thank you for putting words into my mouth.

    You don’t seem to understand. I am willing to admit when I am wrong. You seem to believe that you are always right, and that you always have the correct answer. Even if that were true, it does not give you or me the right to act pompus and arrogant about it.

    From the dictionary.com:
    ar·ro·gant ( P ) Pronunciation Key (r-gnt)
    adj.
    Having or displaying a sense of overbearing self-worth or self-importance.
    Marked by or arising from a feeling or assumption of one’s superiority toward others: an arrogant contempt for the weak.

    I do not feel or assume to be superior over you or your cohorts. I believe us to all be on the same level: fallen humans saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. In my first post I was merely attempting to show you what it appears like. I see that you are unable to take constructive criticism. Perhaps some of my comments have come from a place of anger and that is not right but I feel the same could be said of you as well. You and I would probably agree on more things than we disagree.

13. Tim Reed Says:
    July 14th, 2006 at 12:54 pm

    Cal,

    I’m not putting words in your mouth. I’m using the exact words that you are saying. You think we’re arrogant, yet at the same time you believe that you are absolutely correct inyour statements here.

    On the ohter hand you’ve attributed to us an attitude neither one of us have shown, and in fact in our first podcast freely admitted that we’re often wrong and make mistakes.

    And in fact in this latest post you’ve heightened your arrogance. Look at your last paragraph: the only reason we have conflict is because you’re right and we can’t take constructive criticism.

    If you want to disagree with us, that’s fine. Lets discuss particular issues, and at the very least come to some understanding on where each of us stands and why, but when you come in here deliberately shut down lines of communication based on us acting and having attitudes that are exactly teh same as yours and are in fact essential to any giving of opinion it doesn’t do us much good and in fact prevents any communication whatsoever.

14. Cal Says:
    July 19th, 2006 at 10:22 am

    For some reason, my last comment never got posted. I basically just said that this discussion became something I never intended it to. I wasn’t meaning to point fingers and definently didn’t want to sound arrogant.

    So, I’m dropping it at that. There are much more important things to discuss… Like the buttery Jesus statue.

15. Tim Reed Says:
    July 21st, 2006 at 12:01 am

    Sorry about the comment censoring. For some reason my spam software really doesn’t like you. I’ll have to give it a stern talking to.

    But yes. the big buttery Jesus is worthy of discussion.

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